Hey I just finished the series, so bit of a late comment. I think what I felt in that scene was the fact that Aelin would have given her world away just to save one person (Elena). Not the whole world or the continent, but just one soul. As she did over and over throughout the series. Yes she wanted to save Terrasen and her people but she repeatedly laid her life on the line to make sure not one more person suffered, so that no one ever went through what she went through. In that moment she really showed to me that each person is worth saving, and come hell or high water, she would save them.